Hottest Business Ideas for 2002

Financial Planning

BY Laura Tiffany | January 1, 2002|

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A head for numbers and the stomach for the tumults of running your own business--if you can pass this anatomy test, then you might be up for what the Jobs Rated Almanac 2001 calls the best job in the country: financial planning.

This field is steadily growing: The number of certified financial planners (a designation regulated by the CFP Board of Standards) has risen from 31,900 in 1997 to 37,101 in 2001. The number of CFP Board Registered Education Programs has more than doubled since 1996, from 87 to 213.

"Financial planning is a professional practice that involves specialized knowledge in the areas of cash management, risk management, tax planning, retirement planning, investment planning and estate planning--and most important, an awareness of the interconnectedness of all these areas," says David B. Yeske, CFP and national president-elect of the Financial Planning Association.

Financial planners almost always have a financial industry background, whether CPA, stock broker or even tax attorney. "From there, you must add specialized knowledge about financial planning, with a goal toward becoming a certified financial planner," says Edward J. Stone, author of Getting Started in Financial Consulting and editor of The Journal of Corporate Accounting & Finance. "Increasingly, customers want financial planners who are certified. It demonstrates at least a minimum level of competence."

Count your CFP courses as your first startup cost--though you can't gain certification until you've passed the exam, have three years of professional experience, and agree to abide by the CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Practice Standards.

Beware: If numbers are attractive to you but you must always stick to a formula, this field probably isn't for you. "Some people are attracted to financial services because they like being able to measure things, to come up with precise numerical answers," says Stone. "But that's definitely not what it feels like to be an independent financial consultant. You have to be a creative problem-solver. There are no formulas to follow."

In other words, you've got to be able to market your services, keep your own business finances afloat, work comfortably on your own and communicate with clients. "You can't apply the technical tools of financial planning unless you also have good listening skills and a reasonable amount of empathy," says Yeske. "There is no one right answer when working through the financial planning process with a client, but, instead, many possible solutions."